Ruling shows rise of civil institutions

Mexican Army soldiers patrol the streets of Ojinaga, on Mexico's border with U.S., Wednesday, July 24, 2008. Ojinaga's citizens protested a day earlier against abuses by Mexican soldiers sent to crack down drug trafficking. Mexico's National Human Rights Commission says it has documented more than 600 cases of abuse since Calderon sent troops on anti-narcotics missions throughout Mexico beginning in 2006. Now, charges against the military may be heard in a civilian court. (AP Photo/Guillermo Arias)

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The biggest losers in Mexico's drug wars are innocent civilians. They, not criminals or cartel foot soldiers, overwhelmingly constitute the more than 60,000 Mexicans who have lost their lives in six years of drug-related violence. And they have been victimized not only by the cartels but also by government officials who are supposed to be protecting them.

In one of the worst examples, the Washington Post reported on the case of Gen. Manuel de Jesus Moreno Avina, the commander of an infantry company that in 2008 took over Ojinaga — a town across the border from Presidio in West Texas. The General, as he came to be known, instituted a reign of terror under which Moreno's soldiers are accused of illegal detentions, torture and murder.

As part of the Mexican government's efforts to combat the drug cartels, their firepower and their corrupting influence on state and local law enforcement, President Felipe Calderón has deployed more than 50,000 Mexican troops into troubled areas, particularly along the Rio Grande. According to human rights watchdogs, the charges against Moreno and some of his subordinates are not unique.

What is unique is that for the first time, those charges may be heard in a civilian court. In a landmark ruling, the Mexican Supreme Court recently moved the jurisdiction for the trial of Moreno and fellow defendants from secret military tribunals, which have less than stellar records in such cases.

The change in venue removes a major source of friction between Mexico and the United States, which has committed $1.6 billion in support to the Mexican government under the Mérida Initiative. The funds are intended to enhance the abilities of Mexico's law enforcement and military entities as well as strengthen its civil and judicial institutions. But the U.S. Congress has withheld some of those funds precisely because of the failure to prosecute members of the military accused of abuses.

The case against Moreno would also provide a serious test of Mexican democracy and Mexico's judicial system. If the case goes forward and he actually stands trial, it will be a positive sign that even under the duress of the cartel wars, civil society in Mexico is making historic progress.